January 12, 2009
Ken Silverstein
EnergyBiz Insider
Editor-in-Chief
The Tennessee Valley Authority has a public relations nightmare on its hands. A retention wall used by a steam plant near Kingston, Tenn. has ruptured, pouring out 1.1 billion gallons of fly ash sludge into the neighboring communities.
The nation's largest utility has begun serious outreach programs and clean-up initiatives. But civic and business leaders say that much more is necessary, noting that TVA has skimped on previous modernization efforts. They emphasize that the utility must now reach inside its treasury to safeguard local communities, advance area infrastructure and expand the scope of its green energy endeavors.
"We want to work with green organizations and environmentalists," says Brad Parish, with the Oak Ridge Institute for Science and Education. "Now is the time to explore alternative means of energy. Kingston could become a showcase for other communities and not become the poster child for killing clean coal technology."
Fly ash is a byproduct from burning coal and one that contains toxic substances that can cause cancer and other harmful health effects. Such coal waste actually falls under the guidelines set for non-municipal, non-hazardous waste. The rules governing its disposal are vague, allowing the substance to be regulated by the state that establishes the appropriate rules for each site. At present, most such waste is buried in landfills.
TVA's Kingston Fossil Plant was investigated before the December 22nd accident. Several retention pond leaks were reported years earlier, with each being patched up as opposed to being permanently fixed. The facility uses large retention ponds to store the fly ash. But some experts had suggested it use other methods such as installing synthetic liners -- solutions that would have been better and ultimately more cost effective.
Regulators there are now fearful that local water wells could become contaminated. They also worry that dry fly ash will flourish and damage air quality. It's a PR and legal debacle -- soon to be replete with lawsuits and a visit from a movie-star recruiter who will bring with her a cast of hungry trial lawyers. Needless-to-say, it's a good bet that TVA will change the way it houses coal waste and addresses future community concerns.
TVA has said that the destruction to the roughly 400 acres of land and water can be remedied without increasing its rates. It would fund the efforts by foregoing other capital projects and then re-allocating that money. But that may not be enough, causing area leaders to say that Congress may have earmark additional monies. They note that the area is known as a retiree haven because of its water fronts.
Business Strategies
The improvement of control efficiencies and the integration of various gasification technologies either already have or will have the ability to reduce emissions from coal powered electric generation. However, the byproducts of the coal combustion process, such as fly ash and bottom ash, and emissions control byproducts, such as scrubber sludge, are still an outstanding issue.
Routine coal plant operations are estimated to produce annually about 28 million tons of fly ash and bottom ash, according to the U.S. Department of Energy. A small fraction of that is now used to make concrete, asphalt or masonry blocks, although the potential to create far more is on the horizon.
According to Parish, there are several promising technologies on the horizon that could be used to both prevent and to clean up fly ash. One that the Oak Ridge Institute is researching and developing is called phytoremediation. It is simply the use of plants to reduce the concentrations of pollutants -- a concept that has moved successfully from laboratory studies to field-scale evaluations.
For its part, TVA says that phytoremediation is a tool it has used in the past and that it might do so again. The immediate response to fixing the problem, though, is by dropping 21 tons of grass seed from helicopters to cover the damaged acreage and to lessen the dust and erosion. TVA is also saying that it monitors air and water quality around the clock, noting that the municipal drinking water supplies are safe.
"This is not a time that TVA holds its head up high," says Tom Kilgore, chief executive of TVA at a public forum just after the crises. "We're going to clean it up. We're going to clean it up right. "We're looking at all options for how to contain this, and we're not likely to go back to the old design."
TVA, which is installing new pollution controls at its coal plants as well as committing to implementing green technologies, is bound to suffer. But civic leaders there say that TVA can turn this around by becoming a beacon of environmental stewardship and by working to beautify the surrounding areas.
While those citizens recognize TVA's vital role in the region, they have questioned its business strategies -- everything from its capital project priorities to its overall generation portfolio. The goal now is to move forward -- to get beyond a coal-centric society and to one that recognize the importance of green energy.
"TVA has not necessarily been a responsible citizen," says Brant Williams, council member of City of Kingston. "What is the actual cost of the way we generate electricity? "Have we paid a much greater price to have TVA electricity than we realize? Our community does not want to be seen in the same way as those of Three Mile Island or Love Canal. We want to be known as a leader in green technology and energy."
TVA is working to minimize the harm not just to the local eco-systems but also to its long-standing reputation. Cleaning the affected areas is a first step. Implementing more cutting edge programs would be a second. The spotlight won't fade, however, until TVA assures both its neighbors and the nation that decisive action is on the way.
More information is available from Energy Central:
Coal's New Challenge - Technology is Crucial, EnergyBiz, July/Aug 2008
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